OK, I am starting to think that my scale is on the fritz. Its digital, about 5 years old but honestly didn't use it til the last few months. The darn thing is not consistent at all. I am not sure if I am the crazy one or if it is. Changed the battery and nothing changed. In fact, it was supposed to "reset" itself after the new battery installation and it did nothing that the instructions said it was supposed to do. So maybe it is me! LOL. Mine has built in "modes" that I have long ago lost the instructions on so have no clue how they work.
So guess what my question is, do you have better luck with digital scales or with regular ones? And, how often do you have to replace such a thing?

I wish I knew! I am so flustered with mine too, its not even funny... I just bought it a few weeks ago and the darn thing is almost 5 pounds different from the last time I weighed... even if I weigh 30 seconds later. Very discouraging and I do not know where I am truly at!

I feel your pain!

I'm having issues with mine too. It gives me very different numbers day to day, which I had chalked up to fluctuations. But now I'm getting on it repeatedly just to see what it will do, and while it gives me a different number everyday, it gives me the same number all day long, morning to night, no matter if I have my shoes on or not, or if I've just guzzled an entire liter of water, it doesn't budge a bit. Yesterday it told me I was 177.9lbs all day and today it refuses to say I'm anything but 182.4lbs.

It isn't very old either so I have no idea what the problem is :/

I threw my scales out the other week when they said I had gained 15kgs (about 30lbs) over night!! Hubby bought some new ones that have all these different things on them. When I used them for the first time I could figure out my weight, BMI and how much I need to loose to reach my goal. But they said something about 50% (I'm in Japan and the scales are in Japanese). I called hubby, who is Japanese and asked him what this number was, 50% of what. He collapesed into fits of laughter, tears rolling down his face, I begged him to tell me what is 50%. Finally through howls of laughter he told me that was the percentage of fat I have. Needless to say I didn't think it funny.
Jackie

OMG that is exactly what mine does! Even after the battery change! Just to test it I held a 5 lb weight in my hand RIGHT after I had weighed myself. Said that same darn thing regardless of the 5 lb weight! Argh!!!!!!

I love my digital scale, we have had it for six years now. It's a Tanita, a basic digital (no body fat percentage measurements) and I never get bigger swings in my weight reading than .2-.4 of a pound, from one weigh to another in the morning. No wonky weights or errors, it all makes sense based on my calories, water retention, etc etc.

Fluctuations of 3-5 pounds overnight, or even throughout the day, are not a problem with the scale. Remember, it's not just measuring fat... it's measuring water and blood, the food in your stomach, stuff in your intestines, your bones and muscles, etc. How much water you hold from day to day, just by itself, fluctuates a great deal. It depends on hormones, and salt intake, and recent exercise, and the weather. And, I swear, the phase of the moon!

The scale is nothing but a tool. It gives you a measurement of your overall weight at a particular point in time. It is ONLY useful as you gather more data (more measurements) and see whether it's trending up or down.

Some people only weigh once a month. That way, the trend is more obvious. Some folks weigh weekly, but if you're only comparing this week to last week the water fluctuations can get you (because they can be up to 5 pounds, which is well within the range of actual fat lost in a week). Some daily weighers actually average their last seven days' weight to get "today's weight" (fairly easy to do in a spreadsheet if you're already measuring weight every day). This smooths out the fluctuations of water and food weight and gives you a clearer picture of whether your weight is trending up or down.

Another thing to consider is that if you focus solely on the number on the scale -- the result -- you may become discouraged very easily. The body is not a machine with clear and predictable outcomes to inputs (if I eat 3500 calories fewer than I need, I'll lose one pound of weight). Over time, yes, that works... it's the basis for almost every reducing diet out there. But it happens more in fits and starts than in a smooth, slow, steady reduction of weight.

Another way of looking at the journey may be to focus on your plan and behaviours. If you are eating and exercising on-plan, the number on the scale WILL drop. It has too. Eventually. The number on the scale is only a measurement of that result. It is not part of the plan itself. So if you are consistently following your plan (whatever it is), and you have a solid, workable plan, the weight WILL come off. The scale WILL follow. It must.

heh heh - I've already posted my feelings toward scales.

However, I will say, I don't like digital scales - they seem to be all over the place.

I use an old "o-matic" pressure scale. Make sure it is set to zero and it is very consistant with my doctors uber built-in scale. Mind you, it still measures water weight ups and downs, but I never see the crazy 20 pound jumps I've seen in digital scales (and differences in weight between digital scales).

Just my two cents though, my Boyfriend loves his digital.